Banking Blog

Bank fees declining at Chase

Here's a headline you probably didn't expect: Chase is actually lowering some of its bank fees. Yes, you did read that correctly.

However, the news doesn't mean that checking accounts are much cheaper at the financial giant. The bank is only lowering certain fees, none of which are directly tied to typical monthly account activities. Here's a breakdown of the adjustments to fees for Chase customers:

The cost of overdraft protection transfers from savings to checking accounts will drop from $12 to $10.

In-person requests for stop payments will drop from $34 to $30.

Online or mobile stop-payment requests will drop from $27 to $25.

While any decline in bank fees is something to celebrate, I'm curious how many customers this will truly impact. I'm guessing the number of stop-payment requests is relatively small, and the bank's real revenue generator comes from overdrawn customers who do not have savings accounts. More importantly, I'm wondering if this may give the bank an excuse to hike the fees that really matter to your bottom line, such as monthly maintenance fees or out-of-network ATM charges.

This certainly makes work for the public relations department at Chase easier as the entire banking industry continues to unload more charges for customers. While Bank of America and Wells Fargo have both made recent headlines with new checking account fee experiments, Chase can send customers notes full of banking cheer.

What do you think? Would these fee decreases help to save you any money?

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8 Comments

Brad

April 23, 2012 at 8:30 pm

Checking is free at Chase with direct deposit.

Len

April 23, 2012 at 12:51 pm

Chase burned me on a late payment to my credit card & hiked my apr to 25% & I had my mortgage through them! They would not retract the high interest rate & I clearly was a good customer for them. I have now paid them off and they will not get my business again.

Dee

April 22, 2012 at 6:18 pm

I HATE Chase. Due to an unemployment situation we missed several credit card payments. Chase hiked our interest rate to 27%. I explained the situation to them & was told after a certain amt of on-time payments we should call & could get the rate reduced to a more reasonable one - a rate where we actually would have a chance of paying off what we owe. We did this and called back as we were told & they absolutely refuse to go lower than 27%, "don't know why we were told this." How convenient for them. As soon as we claw out of this hole I will NEVER use any type of Chase service again. And yes, we used to pay cash for things. But ANYONE can get hit with a medical,family or unemployment situation unexpectedly and your emergency savings could evaporate quite quickly. You have no choice but to resort to the plastic in some cases.

Theresa

April 15, 2012 at 12:56 pm

Every bank has some fees. IMHO Chase is actually one of the most reasonable if you don't want to or can't go to a credit union. However, with all the bank stimulus payments, you think they could let the consumer have a break.

Pay cash. Barter. Save Pennies. The whole system is ready to crack

Fidious Fog

April 14, 2012 at 4:33 pm

Do like your parents and grandparent did...Pay Cash...and stop all those fee's. Think of all the money you will save in a year's time.

John Russo

April 11, 2012 at 12:57 pm

It's a game they play, lower one fee, raise another. The outcome is they do what makes them more money which means you lose. People need to stop complaining , yes stop, and take action. Your money keeps them in business. A few years ago when one huge bank decided to increase fees and all credit card rates customers realized they had a choice and made a change. over 600,000 customers closed their accounts, myself included. No one had to hold my hand or tell me what to do, I just knew it was the way to go. Simple right?
Today credit unions are seeing a tremendous influx of new customers. They have many of the same services banks have without the high fees. They do low cost auto loans, mortgages and refinance, have online bill payments, direct deposit and much more. No surprise rate increases. Be part of a select group of Americans who can think and make choices rather than excuses.

Brooke Lorren

April 09, 2012 at 2:38 pm

They lost me as a customer when they got rid of free checking. As far as the above fees, I never paid any of the above fees, so it wouldn't do me any good to go back. My credit union is doing fine for me.

Josh G

April 08, 2012 at 7:11 pm

Yes but they instated new fees. Business Checking now must have atleast $5k balance or they hit you with a $15/month fee.

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